Red Bull Issues EMOTIONAL Health Update After Yuki Tsunoda’s Scary CRASH L…

Red Bull Issues EMOTIONAL Health Update After Yuki Tsunoda’s Scary CRASH L…read more

Red Bull Racing have issued a reassuring medical update after Yuki Tsunoda’s alarming roll-over in Imola qualifying. Barely minutes into Q1, the Japanese driver lost the rear of his RB-Honda as he flicked through the Villeneuve chicane, still carrying speed from Tamburello. The car pirouetted over the kerbs, dug into the gravel, and somersaulted, finally sliding upside-down into the tyre wall. Marshals and the medical team reacted instantly, and race control threw a red flag to halt proceedings.

Fortunately, Tsunoda freed himself from the cockpit unaided and was transported to the circuit’s medical centre for the mandatory precautionary checks. In a statement released on X (formerly Twitter), Red Bull confirmed that the 25-year-old “has been examined and released with no injuries detected,” ending anxious speculation around the paddock and among fans watching live.

While his health is intact, the crash devastated Tsunoda’s Saturday. With the clock ticking and the chassis requiring lengthy inspection, he registered no competitive lap time. Stewards granted permission for him to start the Grand Prix, but from the very back of the grid—a brutal handicap at Imola, where the narrow, flowing layout and short DRS zones make overtaking notoriously difficult.

Tsunoda’s 2025 season had already been stop-start. Red Bull sit on 105 points, yet only six are his. The underwhelming tally, combined with occasional errors and stiff midfield competition, has left the Japanese driver under pressure to prove he merits a long-term place alongside Max Verstappen. Saturday’s accident arrives at precisely the wrong moment, further complicating his quest to show consistent pace and race-craft.

Verstappen, by contrast, produced another polished display. The reigning champion wrung every fraction from the RB21 to secure P2, missing pole by a mere two-hundredths of a second to McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. With a front-row launch and Imola’s processional tendencies, Verstappen is ideally positioned to attack for victory and consolidate his title bid.

Tsunoda’s only realistic route into the points will be strategic ingenuity or race-day chaos. Engineers may gamble on an offset tyre plan—starting on durable hards before switching to fresh mediums—or hope for a safety-car period to compress the pack. Spring weather in Emilia-Romagna can be capricious; a rain shower would scramble strategies and perhaps hand Tsunoda a lifeline. Every lap on Sunday will matter: rebuilding confidence, collecting data, and, with luck, turning a battered Saturday into a spirited recovery drive. The paddock, relieved by his clean bill of health, now waits to see whether adversity can spark one of the comeback stories Imola sometimes delivers.